Air-lift pump



J. OLIPHANT AIR LIFT PUMP original Filed 'July 29. 1919 Sept. l

Patented Sept. 16, 1924.

UNITED STATES JOHN OLIPHANT, OF GHICAGU, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR'TO SULLIVAN MACHINERY COM- PANY, A CORPORATION 0F MASSACHUSETTS.

AIR-LIFT PUMP.

application ma my 2s, ma, sei-m no. $13,997. Renewed ummm-y n, um:

To all w/wm t may concern.'

Be it known that I, JOHN OLIPHANT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Air-Lift Pumps, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact specification.

My invention relates to air lift pumps.

It has for its object to provide an improved air lift pump. A further object of m invention is to provide an improved air li t pump of the eneral type described and claimed in the elson Patent 1,151,529, wherein the controlling means are entirely automatic in their action and are adapted to produce a more perfect emulsion despite variations of pressure and with eater efficiency and facility. In practice wlth' the ordinary form of foot iece'the air and water pressures just outsi e of the mixin tube are nearly balanced, but it has been ound` that when pumping under certain condi tions a distinct improvement in the steadiness of discharge and reduction in air consumption and a better emulsitication are secured by ca. ing anair pressure in the mixing tube slightly in excess of the submergence requirements, 'thus forcing the air into the ascending column of water at a hi her velocity. To ing this improved mode of operation is, more specifically, the obj ect of my invention.

In the accompanying drawings I have shown for purposes of illustration one embodiment which my invention may assume in practice.

In these drawin Fig. l is a side eesvation of an air lift system equipped with my improvement.

Fig. 2 is a detail vertical sectional view of the pump.

F 1g. 3 is a transverse sectional view on line 3 3 of Fig. 2.

In this illustrative construction I have shown an air lift system comprising the usual compressor l supplying a receiver 2,

which in turn discharges into a down pipe 3 ileading to an air lift pump 4 of an improved construction hereinafter described, located in the well casing 5, the um discharging the mixture of air and llqui formed thereby through an up-pipe 6 into a communicating discharge line 7.

provide means for accomp ish-A In my improved construction it will be observed that the down-pipe 3 communicates through an elbow 8 with a threaded sleeve 9 on the lower end of a hollow upstanding mixing member 10. As shown, 10 is also disposed coaxially with and `within a. pump casing 11 threaded between an elbow carrying member 12 and theup-pipe 6 and having a reduced or venturi ortion 13 at its upper end. It will here also e observed that the member 10 is provided with oblique apertures or perforations 14 in the lower part thereof, the perforated portion herein being shown as extending from the sleeve 9 to a point within the upper half of the member 10. In a. preferred form of my invention, these openings 14 are bell-mouthed as described and claimedl in my (zo-pending application Serial No. 177,605, filed J une 29, 1917, which has, since the tiling of this application, matured into Letters Patent N o. 1,363,198, dated Dec. 21,1920, but for the purposes of the present invention and to Yfacilitate illustration thereof herein, this feature has not been shown in the drawings. It will also be noted that movable longitudinally of the member 10 and, herein, in sliding engagement with the wall of the axial opening 15 therein, is a rforation covering member, herein in the orm of an elongated plunger 16, having at its lower end a conical portion 17 adapted to seat in a c orres riding seat 18 formed on the inner end o the slee"J a and having at its upper end an axialy disposed, upwardl extending rod 19 shdable in a cap mem r 20 on the up er end of the member 10, In my improvedp construction it will also be observed that this rod 19 is relatively short, the weight of the parts being such that the plunger 16 normally tends to seat on the seat 18 and close all the perforations 14, and that the plunger and its rod unite to form a weighted controlling member normally oping flow of pressure fluid into the memgg: 10 and adapted to oat or ride on the crest of the incoming stream of pressure tluid, and/by thereby increasing the minimum pressure at which the latter may discharge and so the velocity of the latter, and by causing it to pass through a proper number of peaforations, cause the pressure fluid to form a more erfect emulsion.

In the use ci) my improved construction this member it will be observed that all necessity for connecting .the plunger with any controlling vmechanism at ground level is entirely eliminated, the controlling mechanism instead `opeating automatically below ground.. at all creases, automaticall decreasing or cutting olf the flow throng the-pump so as to maintain the pressure or veloclty` through.

the open orifices, and when the volume of air supplied increases, automatically increasing the flow area by opening more orifices, and during full flow conditions assuming 'an inoperative condition in the unperforated upper end of the foot piece. It will also be observed that lat the same time that the eectivenessuof the controllin mechanism is thus augmented and rendered certain at all Vtimes without requiring any attention on the part of the operator, through my improved construction it is made possible to simplify the equipment by eliminating the long length of rod extending from the pump to the surface of the ground, and all controlling or adjusting means for such a rod, and also to reduce the number of perforations required in the upper end of the member 10. Theseand other advantages of my improved construction will, however, be clearly apparent to those skilled in the art.

While I have in this a plication s ecillcally described .one emb xment whic my invention ma assume in practice, it will be understood t at this form of the same is shown forpurposes of illustration and that the invention may be modified and embodied in various other forms without departing from its spirit or the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In an air liftpump, a. perforated mixindg tube, and floating means thereon adapte automatically to permit an increase in the rate -of pressure fluid ilow through the perforations therein.

2. In an air lift pump, a perforated mixing tube, and automatically operative floating means associated therewith for causing, so long as pumping takes place, a velocity of tlow through the individual perforations i the mixing tube in excess of that which would result from a pressure suilicient to eeet discharge against the existing head.

3. In an air lift pump, a perforated mixing tube, and a floating member 'movable relative thereto and over the perforations therein responsive to variations in fluid pressure supply to said mixing tube.

4. In an air li pump, a perforated holsupply to said mixing tube and during low mixing tube and a plunger guided therein and movable over the perforations there- 1n in response to variations in pressure sup- 'ply to said riser mixing tube.

5. In an air lift pump, a erforated mixing tube, and a member gui ed thereon and movable over the perforations therein to vary the number of effective perforations automaticallyin proportion to a variation in fluid pressure Supply. j

.6; In an air lift pump; a erforated mixing tube, and a member i ed thereby and movable longitudinally t ereof in response `to variations in fluid pressure supply to increase the number of effective perforations as the fluid pressure increases.

7. Inan air lift pump, a perforated mixing tube, and a member guided thereby and movable longitudinally thereof in response 'to variations in fluid pressure supply to decrease the number of eifective perforations as the lluid` ressure decreases.

8. In an air lift pump. a mixing tube perforated throughout a portion of its length, and a member movable longitudinally thereof in response to variations in fluid pressure supply to said mixing tube and disposable duringmaximum fluid pressure supply opposite the unperforated portion of the latter.

9. In an air lift pump, a mixing tube perforated throughout a portion of its length, and a member movable longitudinally thereof in response to variations in fluid pressure mm1- mum fluid pressure supply closing t e perforations in said mixing tube.

10. In an air lift pump, a mixing tube erforated throughout a portion of its ength, and a floating plunger therein movable longitudinali thereof in response to variations in ilui pressure suppl to said mixin tube and disposable in said unperforate portion.

11. In an air lift pump, a perforated hollow mixing tube having an axially dtiggosed. seat in its lower end and a perfora cap --in its upper end, and a floating plunger adapted to rest on said seat and having a rod slidable through the perforation in said cap.

12. In an air lift pump, a mixing member having a plurality of discharge orifices therein, and means for automatically varying the number of active orifices in accordance with variations 1n the pressure supresponsive to pressure variations therein to vary the discharge area of said discharge means.

15. In an air lift pump, an air discharge member, and automatic loading means' cooperating therewith and adapted to maintain the discharge pressure substantially constant for a given head.

16. In an air lift pump, a perforated mixing tube, and automatic means therein adapted to maintain the discharge pressure substantially constant for a given head.

17. In an air lift pump, an air dischargeY taining, during air discharge, a predetermined di'erence between air pressure and hydrostatic head cooperating with said air discharge member.

20. In an air lift pump, an air discharge member, and means cooperating therewith and adapted during pumping automatically to maintain a predetermined discharge velocityy for any given hydrostatic head.

21. n an air lift pump, a mixing tube .perforated throughout a portion of its length, and a member movable longitudinally thereof in response to variations in pressure therein and disposable durin maximum .pressure opposite the unpe orated portion of said mixing tube.

22. In an air lift pump, a mixing tube perforated throu hout a ortion of its length, and a mem er movab e longitudinally thereof in response to variations in iuid pressure therein and during minimum Huid pressure closing the perforations in said mixing tube.

In testimony whereof I aiix m signature.

JOHN OLI HANT.

Certilc'ate of Correction.

It is hereby certified that in Letters Patent No. 1,508,667, granted September 16, 1924, upon the a plication of John (Hiphant, of Chicago, Illinois, for an improvement in Air-Lift Pum s, an error appears in the prmted specification uirin correction as follows: IPage 2. line 69, claim 4, strike out the word riser an that the said Letters Patent ehould be read with this correction therein that the same ma conform to the reford of the case in the Patent Oce.

Signedy and sealed this 4th day of November, A. D. 1924.

L FENNING,

[am] KAR Acting Commumr of Patenti. 

